Sometimes We are Told to Wait (John 11:1-7)

We live in a society today where we do not like to wait, in fact many companies work on it so we don’t have wait.  Little Caesars Pizza slogan is Hot and Ready, you walk in and a minute later you walk out with your hot and ready Pizza.  We have come to believe that this is how God should work in our lives as well, we ask and we get instantly or are told no right away so we can move on with our lives.  But many times we are told to wait, sometimes we get so frustrated with waiting we decide that God has actually told us no and we stop praying for that need.  Here in chapter eleven of John we read about the two sisters sending word to Christ, telling Him that His friend Lazarus is very sick.  But instead of quickly packing up and leaving to go see Him or even Just saying a word to heal to him, Christ waits two days before going to Lazarus.  He tells this to His disciples, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”(John 11:4)

We have talked about this idea that we are to glorify God in all we do, but have you ever thought that in the delaying of a yes would come to glorify God.   Many times as humans we want things here and now not later and some where else.  We think it doesn’t matter when the yes comes it is going to glorify God just the same.  But what if Christ went down to see His friend right away, Chapter eleven of John would look much different wouldn’t it.  Lazarus would have been just another healing and John may have never put it his gospel.  But because God waited we see an incredible miracle performed we learn that with God timing doesn’t matter. We may think that it is too late for God to do something and wonder why we are still feeling prompted to continue to pray, but with God nothing is impossible He can open what has been closed and closed what has been open. 

Christ also waited not just to bring glory to Him and His father but to help the faith of His disciples grow.  This is the last of the public miracles before Christ goes to the cross.  He wanted His disciples grow in faith in Him.  Many times when we are praying and waiting, God is building up our faith in Him.  This is tough for us to understand and accept sometimes.  But we must continue to grow in our faith and relationship with God.  As 2^nd Peter 3 through 11 tells us, “³ As we know Jesus better, his divine power gives us everything we need for living a godly life. He has called us to receive his own glory and goodness!  And by that same mighty power, he has given us all of his rich and wonderful promises. He has promised that you will escape the decadence all around you caused by evil desires and that you will share in his divine nature.

  So make every effort to apply the benefits of these promises to your life. Then your faith will produce a life of moral excellence. A life of moral excellence leads to knowing God better. Knowing God leads to self-control. Self-control leads to patient endurance, and patient endurance leads to godliness. ⁷ Godliness leads to love for other Christians,^* and finally you will grow to have genuine love for everyone. The more you grow like this, the more you will become productive and useful in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But those who fail to develop these virtues are blind or, at least, very shortsighted. They have already forgotten that God has cleansed them from their old life of sin.  So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Doing this, you will never stumble or fall away.  And God will open wide the gates of heaven for you to enter into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”